Hulk: origin in the comics, versions, enemies, superpowers and more

That MCU has definitely put him on the map of associated world phenomena, above all, The Avengers and an actor who has managed to set the tone for a character as iconic as it is unknown. Mark Ruffalo has been the last of a list that includes extraordinary actors such as Edward Norton, Eric Bana or the unmistakable Lou Ferrigno from the 80s television series, the one that accompanied the afternoon programs of a generation that grew up together with Galactic , The A-Team or Fantastic Rider .

But do you want to know all the details that define this character who, once phase 3 of the MCU is over, continues to wage war in phase 4 and with signs of maintaining his status as a point of reference for the Marvel superheroes to come? Let’s go there…

Origin and identity of the Hulk

The Mass, the Incredible Hulk or, more commonly just the Hulk, are three definitions of the same character created in 1962 by the famous Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. It was in that year, just six decades ago, when the first issue of a comic book bearing the name of a hero who at times seemed to be more aligned with the forms and customs of a supervillain hit the newsstands: cakes like bread, violence unleashed , superhuman strength and little regard for what he destroys around him.

In those early adventures of the Hulk, the adventures of Dr. Bruce Banner are those of a kind of modern Dr. Jekill & Mr. Hyde who transforms into a beast when he suffers a fit of rage. It is, as you can imagine, the contrast of a weak and emotionally reserved character against another who unleashes all his titanic power in order to preserve good and protect the world from the threats that lie in wait. Which are not few.

How is the superhero born?

When the Hulk appears in the comics, the general lines of the character are already outlined. Robert Bruce Banner is a scientist working on a Gamma radiation bomb for the United States Army. In one of the tests something goes wrong and Bruce realizes that a young man named Rick Jones has entered the testing field. In a last-ditch attempt to save him, he manages to push him into an area shielded from the blast with such bad luck that Banner is exposed to near-deadly amounts of that radiation. From that moment on, his DNA will be altered and he will have two personalities.

Throughout his history, Bruce Banner not only became a strong giant full of green muscles, but Marvel sometimes played to paint him a striking gray color. Over time he will discover that only the daughter of General Thunderbolt Ross, Betty Ross, is able to return him to normal when the beast appears.

Hulk’s life will never move around the acceptance of the accident he suffered and one of his main missions will always have to do with finding a cure that prevents him from transforming into The Mass. Remember that in Avengers Endgame , Marvel decides to keep the Hulk with the transformed aspect but with the head, the calm and practically the same personality as Bruce Banner in a fun crossover that was previously seen in the comics.

Superpowers

Hulk is not just muscles and those who have followed the character throughout his history will know that the importance of Dr. Bruce Banner is essential. We are not talking about a normal human being , but about a privileged scientific mind. The famous Norman Osborn (Green Goblin) will say of him that he is “a mind so brilliant that it cannot be measured in any known intelligence test”, since he has experience and skill in fields such as biology, chemistry, engineering, medicine and nuclear physics. Thanks to that talent, he will participate in some projects with Tony Stark, for example.

The Hulk’s main superpower is superhuman strength that allows him to strike with inordinate power, or move quickly on virtually any surface. He can’t fly, but he almost doesn’t care because with several strides he is able to rise up a skyscraper or disappear over the horizon while his pursuers (General Ross almost always) are left with a span of noses unable to follow him.

There are many theories about how we could translate that strength of the Hulk into a tangible measure in our world, but what practically everyone who has followed the character agrees on is that if he has a limitation it is due to the influence of the mind of Bruce Banner , which it remains active in the most critical and violent moments of the green giant. Even so, it is possible to read in many comics that this potential does not have “any finite element inside” and that it would even “be capable of destroying entire planets”.

hulk transformations

Throughout 60 years of comics , Hulk fans have seen him turn into different characters . It is common in Marvel to launch different stories, with characters that change their history and, above all, their appearance and environment, so there is no single Hulk. But there are several.

• Wild Hulk: we can say that it is the version that we all know, the one from the movies or television series, which tirelessly repeats phrases like “Hulk crushes”, “No one is stronger than Hulk” or “The more furious the Hulk, the stronger hulk”. He is, so to speak, the Avenger that we all have in mind and, according to his creators, the most powerful of all.

• Gray Hulk: also known as Mr. Fixit or The Fixer because it was born from a misprint that at the beginning of the series appeared on the pages with different colors. Over time, Marvel decided to revive this gray version and give it its own characteristics, such as greater intelligence and, yes, a smaller size and destructive force. It belongs to the teenage era of Bruce Banner.
• The Professor: We owe this version to Leonard Samson and to a mental apparition of Bruce Banner’s own mother that resulted in a cross between the green and gray Hulk. The result is a kind of much smarter, left-handed, tank-top-wearing, confident hero.
• Hulk without a mind: on paper we are facing the most savage Hulk of all since there is no trace of Dr. Bruce Banner left in his head. He is a machine of total destruction, without any feeling and that devastates anything that is put in front of him.

• Banner Hulk: This is a very particular version of the beast with the body of Banner.
• Hulk Banner: In this transformation, the scientist commands the beast despite keeping the green and muscular appearance, so he has less strength than other versions of the superhero. I’m sure you know her from Avengers Endgame but she has her origins in her encounter with The Almighty in the Secret Wars, where she helped fight the supervillains gathered around Dr. Doom.
• The Master: This is a version of the future who is, in turn, one of the worst supervillains of the Hulk himself, who has an older appearance, almost like an old man, but despite these appearances he maintains his strength and power. .
• Demon Hulk: It is a mental state of the Hulk that has ever tried to take control to end all of Humanity. Fortunately, both what remains of Bruce Banner and the other versions of the character have placated him to prevent him from manifesting.
• Beast Hulk: Moved by Bruce Banner’s resentment and guilt, this version never manifested itself thanks to the will of the Doctor himself, who managed to placate and corner her.
• World War Hulk: Banished from Earth by the Illuminati, this version of the superhero developed after a long forced stay on the planet Sakaar. When he left, he vowed to return to Earth for revenge. Trained by Hiroim, the Hulk would go on to defeat the Avengers themselves, the Fantastic Four, the X-Men, and even Doctor Strange with his infinite power.

hulk enemies

The enemies of the Hulk are counted by dozens but we are going to keep the five that we can consider as the most important. And they are:

• The Master: we have already told you about him, he is the Hulk from a future in which a nuclear war has ended all the heroes of the Earth and has given him a power that has allowed him to become the ruler of the entire planet .

• U-Foes: They are the dark variant of The Fantastic 4 and is made up of the villains Vapor, Vector, X-Ray and Ironclad.
• The Leader: And finally we have Samuel Stern, a character who acquires superhuman intelligence after suffering… you know what? Indeed! A discharge of gamma rays that will lead him to face the Hulk to try to destroy him as the only way to complete his evil plan for world domination.
• Angmo-Asan, the Red King: This villain from Planet Hulk , and ruler of the planet Sakaar, will face the Hulk and will be defeated but not killed. He will have a second chance as a cyborg.
• Abomination: Bruce Banner, in desperation, attempts to end his nightmare with a machine capable of bombarding his body with gamma rays. The thing will not turn out as expected since Emil Blonsky (a KGB agent) will appear on the scene , who will be the one to suffer the lethal exposure and that will turn him into a beast almost as savage as the Hulk.

Hulk’s loves

Despite the fact that when Bruce Banner transforms into the Hulk he does not know anyone, he has had some kind of romantic relationship with well-known characters from the comics. The most recognized are, without a doubt:

• Black Widow: In some passages of the MCU, Bruce Banner will be attracted to Natasha Romanoff and, apparently, no relationship will be finalized. Surely one day we will know what happened between them.

• Betty Ross: daughter of General Ross, as we have explained, she is the only one capable of tempering the anger that shakes the Hulk when he destroys everything in his path. Over the years they got married (in the comics).
• Bereet : She is an alien from the planet Krylor, in Andromeda, who was attracted to Banner’s mind. He finally left Earth and the thing did not happen to majors.
• Marlo Chandler : She was the girlfriend of the gray Hulk in his time as a hitman known as Joe Fixit, but when she discovered his past as a superhero, she cut her losses and the relationship ended.
• Kate Waynesboro – Hired as a lab assistant where Bruce worked, it is eventually discovered that she is a SHIELD agent sent to keep an eye on Banner. The lack of control over the Hulk would lead Kate to leave him… that is, another love that did not work out.
• Jarella: princess of the subatomic world of K’ai, she was one of Hulk’s great loves since they ended up getting married, even accepting Bruce Banner’s beast transformations but Crypto-Mqn crossed her path and ended this beautiful dream by killing her. Quite a disgrace.

Some curiosities about the Hulk, do you know them?

If you think you know everything about the Hulk, we are going to reveal some small curiosities that you may not know about the Marvel character. Behold:

• In Planet Hulk we can see how the alter ego of Bruce Banner reaches the throne of the planet Sakaar, banished by the Illuminati from Earth.
• Hulk, believe it or not, has two children from his relationship with Caiera: one similar to Bruce Banner and the other heir to the mother’s magical power. Both were conceived during Hulk’s stay on Sakaar.
• Lou Ferrigno, an actor who played The Mass in the legendary series of the 80s, put the voice of Hulk in Avengers: Age of Ultron .
• In the 1970s, Wolverine debuted in the Hulk comics as one of his enemies, though over time the two ended up fighting on the same team.

• The Hulk became red as well , in addition to the already mentioned green and gray, although the one who transformed was not Bruce Banner, but General Ross.
• The Hulk has a repressed part of the Hulk’s own mind that is known as the Kluh, which came to be seen in the events of AXIS. Can you imagine its power?
• Although it premiered in 1962, a year later it was on the verge of disappearing when its comic series was canceled because its creators saw it as too inconsistent. Fortunately, that measure was not permanent.